Sunday Night Dinner - Quick Sausage Cacciatore

Another weekend of classes, and so I put Brent in charge of Sunday night dinner. After deciding to go for drinks after a long day of Financial Reporting I got home just in time to put the little one to bed, and Brent had prepped everything for dinner. Unfortunately I forgot I was sending him out to pick up a baby backpack carrier I'd purchased from a swap site, so I ended up finishing up the dinner myself. The recipe said it was a '20-minute' dish, but that must have been a typo, since the instructions clearly make it take at least 30 minutes. Easy enough to put together, and made enough for dinner tonight with leftovers for lunch tomorrow, which is great for the start to a very busy week!

Quick Sausage Cacciatore (adapted from Canadian Living)
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 onion, thinly sliced
- 1 green pepper, sliced
- 2 cups quartered mushrooms
- 2 carrots, sliced
- 2-4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 can (540 ml) tomatoes
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 3 lean Italian sausages
- 4 cups rotini
- grated Parmesan cheese to serve

In saucepan, heat oil over medium heat and fry onion, green pepper, mushrooms, carrot, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper until liquid is evaporated, about 8 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and tomato paste, bring to boil, stirring. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, prick sausages all over with fork. In skillet, cook sausages over medium-high heat, turning occasionally until browned outside and no longer pink inside, about 10 minutes. Drain on paper towels, and slice thinly. Add to tomato mixture and simmer for 10 minutes.

While this is happening, set a large pot of water to boil. When boiling, salt and cook pasta until tender but firm, about 8 - 10 minutes. Drain and return to pot, add sauce and toss to coat. Serve sprinkled with cheese.